(Jean Nicolas) Arthur Rimbaud - Life and work, Later life (1875-1891)

Poet, born in Charleville, NE France. One of the most revolutionary figures in 19th-c literature, he published his first book of poems in 1870, following this with his most famous work, Le Bateau ivre (1871, The Drunken Boat). In 1871, Verlaine invited him to Paris, where they led a life of ill repute together. Before the relationship ended (1873), Rimbaud wrote Les Illuminations, a series of prose and verse poems, which show him to be a precursor of Symbolism, and which were published by Verlaine in 1876, when he believed Rimbaud to be dead. Disappointed at the cold reception given to his Une Saison en enfer (1873, A Season in Hell), he stopped writing, and spent the rest of his life wandering in Europe and the NE regions of Africa.

For other uses see Rimbaud (disambiguation)

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"Jean Nicholas Arthur Rimbaud"(October 20, 1854 – November 10, 1891) was a French poet, born in Charleville.

Life and work

Arthur Rimbaud was born into the provincial middle class of Charleville (now part of Charleville-Mézières) in the Ardennes département in northeastern France.

In 1870 his teacher Georges Izambard became Rimbaud's literary mentor and his original verses in French began to improve rapidly. He returned to Paris in late September 1871 at the invitation of the eminent Symbolist poet Paul Verlaine (after Rimbaud had sent him a letter containing several samples of his work) and resided briefly in Verlaine's home. They scandalized the Parisian literary coterie on account of the outrageous behaviour of Rimbaud, the archetypical enfant terrible, who throughout this period continued to write strikingly visionary verse.

Rimbaud's and Verlaine's stormy love affair took them to London in 1872, Verlaine abandoning his wife and infant son (both of whom he had abused in his alcoholic rages.)

In July 1873, Rimbaud committed himself to journey to Paris with or without Verlaine. Rimbaud considered the wound superficial and at first did not have Verlaine charged. After this, Verlaine and his mother accompanied Rimbaud to a Brussels train station where Verlaine "behaved as if he were insane". In his words, "it was then I (Rimbaud) asked a police officer to arrest him (Verlaine)."

Rimbaud eventually withdrew the complaint, but the judge sentenced Verlaine to two years in prison. Rimbaud returned home to Charleville and completed his Une Saison en Enfer (A Season in Hell) in prose, widely regarded as one of the pioneering instances of modern Symbolist writing and a description of that "drôle de ménage" (odd partnership) life with Verlaine, his "pitoyable frère" ("pitiful brother") and "vierge folle" ("mad virgin") to whom he was "l'époux infernal" ("the infernal husband").

Later life (1875-1891)

Rimbaud and Verlaine met for the last time in March 1875, in Stuttgart, Germany, after Verlaine's release from prison and his conversion to Catholicism. By then Rimbaud had given up writing and decided on a steady, working life; He made a small fortune as a gun-runner, but Rimbaud developed right knee synovitis which degenerated into a carcinoma and the state of his health forced him to return to France on May 9, 1891, where his leg was amputated on May 27.

Rimbaud influenced the following artists, among others: French poets in general, the Surrealists, T. Burroughs, Bob Kaufman, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Hugo Pratt, Mário Cesariny de Vasconcelos, Sérgio Godinho, Klaus Kinski, Dwid Hellion of Integrity, Jack Kerouac, Philippe Sollers, Patti Smith, Bruce Chatwin, Penny Rimbaud, Jim Morrison, John Hall, Bob Dylan, Richard Hell, Pete Doherty, Joe Strummer, John Lennon, Rozz Williams, David Wojnarowicz, Alternative TV and many more. Van Morrison wrote "Tore Down a la Rimbaud."

The Italian gothic band Theatres des Vampires sing (in the original language, French) a sentence of "Jadis, si je me souviens bien...", in their song "Cursed".

Crass co-founder and drummer Penny Rimbaud named himself as a tribute to Arthur Rimbaud, the 'Penny' being a pun on the phrase "arfer (half a) penny", referring to the long discontinued British Ha'penny coin.

Bob Dylan refers to Rimbaud in his song "You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go" from Blood on the Tracks: "Situations have ended sad, / Relationships have all been bad. / Mine've been like Verlaine's and Rimbaud.

Poet and "Godmother of Punk" Patti Smith has a line in her song "Horses" where she urges the listener to "Do the watusi/ And go Rimbaud!

Canadian rock group Red Rider's 1980 song "White Hot" was written about Rimbaud.

The early UK punk band Alternative TV reference Rimbaud in their song "Viva La Rock and Roll";

London-based Rock and Roll band, The Medicine Show not only make reference to the poet in their name, but chief songwriter, John Hall, openly states Rimbaud as an inspiration in his own lyrics.

French musician Hector Zazou's 1992 album Sahara Blue uses Rimbaud's poems as lyrics for 11 of the 12 tracks on the album, and features contributions from David Sylvian, Anneli Drecker, John Cale, Gérard Depardieu, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Tim Simenon, and Brendan Perry and Lisa Gerrard of Dead Can Dance.

British electronica duo Frou Frou take their name from a Rimbaud poem.

In the song Ghetto Defendant on the album Combat Rock by The Clash, poet Allen Ginsberg refers to Rimbaud and the Paris Commune.

Larrikin Love's 2005 single Happy As Annie takes its image of a corpse being mistaken for a sleeping person from Rimbaud's poem Asleep In The Valley.

Welsh poet Dylan Thomas described himself as 'the Rimbaud of Cwmdonkin Drive'

Jim Morrison is said to have described himself as "I am a Rimbaud with a leather jacket". Arthur Rimbaud 'Déposition de Rimbaud devant le juge d'instruction (12 July 1873)'.